A Tangled Web
by Sorceress Pluto
Summary: Crossover Dark Jewels and Sailor Moon. A mysterious force moves Crystal Tokyo to Terreille. Sailor Pluto can no longer get back to the time gates to set things right. Then she does the unthinkable and war results.
1. Prologue

Legal Notes: All the usual disclaimers apply. Nothing belongs to me except this story.  
  
  
A Tangled Web  
  
She was only a shadow in the mist, slightly darker than the gray swirling around her. She stood so still that she might have been a statue, long frozen into a position, forever watching the long mist filled corridor. Only her eyes were alert, garnet eyes that stared tireless ahead.  
An indistinguishable object appeared in the Time Corridor, blurred in the mist. She moved her staff to block its path, uttering the words of challenge. "Stop intruder, you may not enter the Time Corridor! I am Sailor Pluto, the Guardian of Time."  
The object's blurry edges, sharpened, and its shape became visible. It was a large frame of wood with some kind of web strung within it. Pluto was ashamed for thinking it was an intruder. She rubbed her eyes, massaging the ache between her temples. There was a hum of tension on the air but she could not identify it. Leaning forward, she examined the tangled web, knowing it was some kind of prediction of the future. She was so close her forehead almost touched the strands.  
Suddenly, some strange force of red light shot into the time corridor from all directions, piercing its mists shrouds. Pluto turned to see the time gate begin to creak open. She tried to walk towards it and shut it, but before she could reach the door, much of time had already been sucked through. Standing as straight as she could, Pluto called upon her power. "Dark Dome Close!"  
Pluto felt herself slip out of the door just as it slammed shut. Pitching forward on her head, she blacked out into unconsciousness. 


	2. Realms Intertwined

Author's Notes: First of all, the legal disclaimers. Sailor Moon and all the characters contained within that show belong to Naoko Takeuchi and her gang of animators. The Black Jewel Trilogy belongs to Anne Bishop. The only thing I own is this story and the idea of crossing the two.  
  
The point of view here switches between my two favorite characters, Sailor Pluto and Daemon. Please note that this is my first crossover, and my first story with Pluto, so it may turn out a little odd. I just had this great idea and I had to try it, so bear with me. I don't think you will be too disappointed. It's set during Crystal Tokyo before Wiseman and all of the Black Moon stuff. I'm using Japanese names on a whim here, so I'll provide a list for those of you who watch the dub.  
  
Sailor Moon Usagi/ Neo Queen Serenity  
  
Sailor Jupiter Makoto  
  
Sailor Mars Rei  
  
Sailor Mercury Ami  
  
Sailor Venus Minako  
  
Sailor Pluto Setsuna  
  
  
  
A Tangled Web  
  
Daemon Sadi sat in the coach, watching the light shine off of his long buffed fingernails. His golden eyes smiles cruelly as he glanced over at the two officials in charge of bringing him to his new court. The air stank of their fear and they pushed back in their seats away from his eyes. He recalled her name again, Queen Serenity of the little known realm of Earth. It was a small area that had not yet been polluted by Hayll's touch. Dorothea hoped to keep him there for a while, hoped that the stay there would calm him down and dispose of another troublesome queen.  
  
The coach stopped at the landing web closest to Crystal Tokyo, the capital of Earth. Clear jewels gleamed around as Daemon and the two ambassadors disembarked. The coach disappeared again on the yellow web, and Daemon took his first look at Crystal Tokyo. One thing that had not been taken from him was his appreciation of beautiful things, and Crystal Tokyo was definitely a beautiful city. Tall crystalline spires reached up towards the sky, and delicate buildings graced the skyline. It reminded Daemon of Hayll before the corruption of Dorothea and her quest for power.  
  
The palace in Crystal Tokyo was made of the same crystal as the rest of the city, and showcased all of its beauty. A slender golden-haired queen waited for Daemon in the front gardens, her raven haired consort by her side. Four women stood to one side, their warrior like uniforms identifying them as the queen's guards and nobles. They were dressed oddly for soldiers in short miniskirts with an almost sailor type collar on their fukus. Daemon bowed as was expected of him, setting the chips of red- jewels in his shirt cuffs to auditory retention so he could listen later. The ambassadors babbled on and on Daemon took the time to examine his new master.  
  
The queen herself was still young looking, her jewel resting against her breast in a heart shaped setting. Daemon frowned upon viewing it, a clear diamond like jewel. He had always thought that clear jewels were useless except for light. How could this queen be expected to rebel against Dorethea if she only wore the clear? He turned to observe the other nobles there. They were quite, but watched him very carefully, their muscles tight and ready to spring to action should he attempt any violence. Daemon allowed a slow smile to turn up the corners of his mouth. It seemed that his reputation had preceded him. Which was just as well, since fear was a very motivating factor.  
  
"Hmm?" asked Daemon, realizing that Queen Serenity had just spoken something to him and was waiting for an answer. He turned back towards her, his eyes focusing back in on the present. The queen looked at him very oddly before repeating her statement.  
  
"I said, while you are here you will mainly service my court," she gestured towards the warriors to her right. "Therefore, one of them will show you to your room. Rei."  
  
The dark, almost purple, haired warrior stepped up, her red jewel flaming on her bow. She examined Daemon with fiery lavender eyes, pausing and then continuing her examination. Rei didn't speak to him, her haughty demeanor signaling that she thought she was above pleasure slaves. Fine, thought Daemon, they all change in the end. He allowed himself a brief glimmer of satisfaction, before recomposing his face into the perfect beautiful mask.  
  
His room was nicer than the previous places he had stayed in, true testimony to the beauty of Crystal Tokyo. It overlooked the large rose gardens that spread out like a maze across the grounds. It was rumored the queen liked roses. Well, she would soon find that this rose had thorns. A bell rang deep within the hollows of the castle signaling it was almost time for the evening meal. Daemon called in his trunks and began sorting through the outfits.  
  
  
  
Setsuna awoke a long while later, no longer transformed as Sailor Pluto. She stretched, relaxing cramped muscles. She remembered vaguely the events of the past hour, being sucked through the opening time gate. Looking around, she tried to pinpoint exactly where she was. It looked like the Crystal Tokyo of the future. She was lying on a bench somewhere near the palace. Rubbing her aching head, Setsuna looked everywhere for her transformation pen. She had to get back to the time gate and make sure everything was okay.  
  
"Pluto Crystal Planet Makeup!" shouted Setsuna, finding the pen safely in one pocket. She felt the familiar rush as her transformation sequence embraced her. Back into the familiar fuku, Sailor Pluto called up her time staff and garnet orb. The garnet orb appeared in her hand, then fused into a necklace sort of thing around her neck. Confused, Pluto wondered if she had discovered a new transformation. Trying again to call up the time staff, she decided that she would have to make due with just the Garnet Orb. Closing her eyes, she tried to teleport back to the time gate.  
  
Sailor Pluto opened her eyes, disappointed to find herself still in Crystal Tokyo. She untransformed from Sailor Pluto back to regular Setsuna. Without her time travel abilities, there was no point in being Sailor Pluto. But something was amiss and it was her job to find out what. The most helpful thing would be to contact her queen at the palace and find out exactly what time it was. Setsuna tried to remember if there was ever a time in the time stream where she knew she would lose her powers, but she couldn't recall one.  
  
  
  
Daemon glided into the large ballroom, recognizing his seat near the end of the table, next to the lesser guards. He stood behind his chair, watching through lowered eyelids as the queen swept down the grand staircases and took her seat. There was the customary applause which Daemon took no part in. As he seated himself, he took note of who he was next too. To his left sat a tall green haired woman. She was turned away from him so he couldn't see her face. To his right were a rather large merchant and his overly suggestive wife. Daemon looked away disgustedly, his attention momentarily captured by studying his other dinner companion.  
  
She turned to look at him, garnet eyes meeting golden ones. There was a flash of confusion in the garnet eyes, but Daemon didn't notice it. He was too busy trying to think of which race might have garnet eyes. He couldn't think of any. She had the dark skin of any of Terreille's three long-lived races, but her eyes didn't match anything Daemon had ever seen. He dismissed it as crossbreeding in this far out part of the Realm.  
  
The confusion flickered again, and this time Daemon caught it and was confused by it himself. He kept his cold mask on, pretending to be mildly amused with the woman and nothing else. He was feeling like a troublemaker tonight, bored from the hours spent traveling in a coach with two old men. Spinning his seduction tendrils like a spider cornering its fly, he began to reel her in.  
  
  
  
Setsuna looked at the man across from her strangely. There were many variations of colors among the Sailor Team, but she had never seen a person with golden eyes before. She was overcome with a need to get back to the Time Corridor and set everything to rights. Looking around the room, everything seemed normal enough. But this man sitting next to her was plain proof that something was amiss. She rubbed her temples. Lately she had been getting the worst headaches. Maybe it was a sign she had spent way too much time watching the time gate. So now that she was away from it, why did she feel so strongly that she had to get back? Duty was a strange thing. Setsuna moved her mind from those matters and thought back to the events of that afternoon.  
  
Neo Queen Serenity had obviously recognized her, but some vital part of her memory was gone. When Setsuna had told her about the time gate, Serenity had looked at her blankly without comprehension. Something was definitely fishy. None of the Sailor Soldiers that she had talked to so far remembered about their lives in the Silver Millennium, or even on Earth before they went into the cataclysmic sleep. It was as if the entire past had disappeared to be replaced by something else. There was also something subtly different about Crystal Tokyo, though she could not put her finger on it. The sky was some how different, stranger and less comforting. Shaking her head to clear it, Setsuna turned back to her dinner partner.  
  
She needed to stimulate some kind of conversation, or she would go crazy with the disconcerting way he watched her. It was almost like a hungry predator surrounding his prey and toying with it. Setsuna stiffened herself into the stone mask she had worn most of her life. Three thousand years was a long time to practice and perfect. Trying to think of something neutral, she was instead bothered by the question that had been plaguing her all meal. "Why are you here in Crystal Tokyo?"  
  
It slipped out without her noticing and Setsuna could not take it back. She bit her lip, hoping that the powerful looking stranger would not be offended. She felt vulnerable without the powers of the garnet orb backing her up. Besides, she could not risk losing what was obviously an important link in the puzzle. She held herself very still and waited for the response.  
  
  
  
Daemon stopped weaving his seduction tendrils, puzzled as to why the woman is showing no response. She must be made of stone, he thought to himself. It didn't matter though. In time she would break with the rest of them. In a way, Daemon relished a little bit of a challenge. Lately his job had been all wait and no effort. Daemon reflected on the question. It seemed genuinely asked, not one of those who wished to emphasize his purpose in being at the court. Still, it was better safe than sorry.  
  
"As if you didn't know," he replied bitterly. She looked genuinely surprised at this answer, and didn't press it. Daemon allowed himself some time to pause and eat the dish in front of him before turning back to their conversation. She was still looking at him in that strange kind of way, like someone trying to remember something just out of reach. Her food was still untouched, but she had the air of someone who had gone long without and no longer needed earthly sustenance.  
  
"I'm sorry, that got started on a bad note," said the woman, pushing a strand of her dark green hair behind her ear. She tilted her head sideways to study him for a second before saying, "My name is Meioh Setsuna, or just Setsuna. Who are you?"  
  
Daemon looked at her as if she was crazy. There was something seriously wrong here. Setsuna had the air of one of the palace guards even though she had not been present at the earlier meeting. If they had heard about his reputation, how could she not know? He was so used to everyone already knowing who he was and avoiding him, that this naiveté caught him off guard. Daemon decided that since she was so under informed, saying his name would have no ill effects. It would be fun to educate her, he could already tell. "I'm Daemon Sadi, better known as the Sadist."  
  
Setsuna showed no comprehension of his nickname, and the usual fear did not flicker across her face. Mildly disappointed, Daemon ignored her for a few minutes and finished off the meal on his plate. He was getting a little tired and bored of this game. Looking up, he saw several ladies sending coquettish looks across the table in his direction. Instantly his opinion changed. He would rather be talking for hours with the infinitely boring Meioh Setsuna than entertaining the nobles of the court.  
  
  
  
Setsuna looked up and followed his gaze across the room to the noble ladies. Something was happening here, but she couldn't piece it together. She sighed, tired of "the Sadist's" negative attitude. Why had she been assigned as his dinner partner tonight. She thought back to that nickname- the Sadist. It was obviously supposed to mean something by the way she said it, but the English word held no place in Setsuna's vocabulary. She tried to remember if they had ever fought an enemy by the name of the Sadist, but none came to mind. The only way to solve this puzzle would be to get more information.  
  
Setsuna allowed the servers to take her plate, smiling at the man in a crisply ironed uniform even though she had not eaten a bite. One of the side effects of being immortal was no need for food or drink. It was handy, but sometimes she missed the taste of real food. Folding her napkin into a design on the table in front of her, Setsuna allowed her thoughts to wander. Almost unconsciously she borrowed Daemon's napkin as well to complete the design.  
  
  
  
Daemon was about to snap at Meioh Setsuna for taking his napkin when he saw what she was twisting from the cloth. The sight almost chilled him to the bone. It was unfinished, but the resemblance was clear. Setsuna was creating a tangled web with the dinner napkins! He looked at her face, but she was in some far off vision. Daemon was reminded of Tersa. He looked closer into the tangled web to read its secrets, but all he couldn't sense anything. Reaching out on hand, he touched the twisted cloth, his skin brushing Setsuna's.  
  
Suddenly, images of fear, pain, and destruction filled his mind with Dorothea sitting at its head, whipping it onwards. Flashes of red, garnet, and black light danced around the outlines, and Daemon could smell the pungent smell of burning blackened flesh. He almost lost himself in this vision of the war to come, the vivid images swirling around his head and battering against his inner barriers.  
  
There was a loud crackling sound and then the tangled web burst into flames. Daemon pulled back, surprised, his eyes meeting Setsuna's for a second. Who is she? he wondered for the first time. Even Tersa's webs have never shown him images like that. And more importantly, what messages has she brought? Suddenly it became important that he tell her why he was in Crystal Tokyo. But there was no time and this was not the place.  
  
Queen Serenity stood up in her chair to announce that the dinner guests would now be moving to the ball room for dancing. Daemon pushed back his chair and followed the flow of bodies, ignoring those who purposely pushed up against him. He kept track of Setsuna, her dark green hair easily recognizable among the blondes and brunettes. She was only a little ways behind him, in conversation with one of the palace warriors, the other woman's hair a short bobbed blue.  
  
Someone bumped into him, pushing him into the other people. Daemon turned, snarling angrily. His face hardened into a stone mask as he saw who it was. One of Dorothea's little followers, they seemed to lurk at every court he ended up at. Pushing her roughly aside, he was tempted to unveil his poison. But he didn't want to call attention to Crystal Tokyo just yet. He still had unfinished business and questions that needed to be answered.  
  
Maybe they sensed the cold fog surrounding him, but nobody else approached Daemon that night. Deep inside he felt an almost sadness, for ballroom dancing was one of the few court things he really enjoyed. Several times, Daemon got up to ask Setsuna to dance, only to be surrounded by giggling females. Of all the people here, she was the only person he could really ask because she knew nothing of who he really was.  
  
The Queen's consort came over to speak to Daemon once during the ball. He was a tall handsome man, but no rival for Daemon, and he knew it. Still, Daemon didn't mind him that much. King Endymion was a good man for his only wearing the rose jewel. He didn't view Daemon with the same barely controlled jealousy that the others had, but rather with polite courtesy. Daemon knew that game and could play it well, plucking all the right strings and coming in on the proper cues.  
  
When Daemon finally retired to his rooms, it was past midnight. Angrily viewing the bell hanging in a small corner of the room, he willed it to be silent. But as expected, the small tinkling sound filled the room after a few seconds. Changing into proper attire, Daemon let the door bang behind him as he walked down the hallways to Lady Makoto's room. She was one of the palace guards, her strange fuku exchanged for a mint green nightgown, and her jewel no where in sight. With a sigh, Daemon closed the door behind himself and entered into his nightly routine. 


	3. Meeting under Moonlight

Author's Notes: All the usual disclaimers, I don't have to repeat them for each chapter, do I? Anything specific here you should know? I'm going to skip a few filler days, because you don't have to know about every specific thing that happens. This chapter will have more of the familiar switching of view points, probably more centered on Daemon. I find it fun to write about Pluto from someone else's view. Please read and review so I know whether or not to write more.  
  
Daemon left his rooms, away from the hated bell and the events it signified. He wandered out towards the rose gardens that he had spotted earlier on his first day at Crystal Tokyo. The large hedges cast dark shadows over the ground, and he didn't watch where he was going, wandering at will. He had heard rumors from the servants that no matter where you went in the maze, you always ended up in the middle. That was fine with Daemon. From his window he had seen the center of the maze, a pretty fountain with water delicately misting down into its carved basin. Something was tugging him there, its psychic scent almost like Tersa's, but at the same time tantalizingly different.  
  
He stumbled over a marble step hidden in the darkness. Looking up, he realized that he was approaching the fountain. The water splashed down, its music drifting out to meet Daemon. The light from the moon shone directly done upon the fountain, its white glow reflected back upwards. There was a woman standing on one edge, her long hair blowing back gently in the wind. The moonlight silhouetted her perfectly so it was impossible to see any features. One long slender arm was reached upwards, as if she was trying to touch the moon.  
  
Daemon stood perfectly still so as not to disturb her. After the years, he appreciated his privacy enough so as not to disturb others. But it was too late. His entering the center of the maze was enough to break the spell of serenity. The woman stepped down from the fountain, her arm lowered. She turned to look at him, and the moonlight shown down upon her face, allowed Daemon to identify who it was. For a second, she looked almost ethereal, then the effect faded and he saw who she truly was. "Meioh Setsuna, I did not expect to find you here."  
  
He was almost angry now that the magic of the moment had worn off. Daemon had come here for peace, not to gossip or entertain anyone. But his anger faded as quickly as it had risen, only the warm anger of emotions. He still had some questions which needed to be answered, and now was a good as any time for asking. He turned back to Setsuna, noticing the dried red blood on her hand.  
  
"What happened?" he asked, reaching out one hand to touch hers. He wasn't sure what he meant by the gesture, it was instinctual and he could not take it back. Something had happened to change his attitude toward woman with the meeting of this one person. Perhaps it was because she seemed so alike, and yet so different. His fingers meet Setsuna's, and he fell into a second vision.  
  
This one was more peaceful than the first, a large glowing city. It looked somewhat similar to the Crystal Tokyo he was in today, but something about it seemed infinitely more ancient. The city was almost superimposed upon a large yellow white moon that bathed the whole scene in gentle light. From somewhere near his ear Setsuna whispered, "The Moon Kingdom."  
  
Daemon dropped Setsuna's hand, blinking back into the present. He stared at the white half moon reflection on his hand, watching as it faded away. A tingle of déjà vu ran down his pine, but he shook it off, hiding his emotions away behind a stone mask, the same mask he had worn for a thousand years.  
  
"It was just a reminder," said Setsuna. Daemon wondered what she was talking about, then remembered the question he had asked, seemingly ages ago. "A reminder never to love a rose."  
  
There was something very sad in her voice, an age old yearning not unlike his own. Daemon sat on the edge of the fountain, feeling its chill through his thin trousers. He dipped one hand into the water, watching as it streamed along either side, the coldness numbing his fingers. On a whim he asked, "How old are you?"  
  
Setsuna laughed a hollow laugh that caused Daemon to look up at her. She seemed ageless by appearance, probably around 19 or so. Much younger than he was, even if she was of the long lived races. Only her eyes seemed ancient, sad knowing eyes, garnet versions of those eyes which he would look into hundreds of years from now. She spoke again, her voice bitter, "Old enough."  
  
That was all. Daemon pondered the words and their various meanings. Old enough for what? His thoughts were interrupted by Setsuna speaking again. "You never did answer my first question- Why are you here in Crystal Tokyo?"  
  
Daemon felt none of his prior bitterness, no need to answer with hard, sarcastic mocking words. He was strangely tired and empty inside, needing to be filled up with something though he didn't know what. His voice was flat when he answered, the malice of that first night gone. "I was given to Queen Serenity."  
  
  
  
"Given?" Setsuna repeated the words. That didn't make sense, how could he been given to someone? Wait! Setsuna mentally stopped and went back over that last sentence. Something clicked inside her head, but she did not want to believe it. "There have never been slaves in Crystal Tokyo!"  
  
"Maybe not before," replied Daemon grimly, "but there are now."  
  
Setsuna turned to look back at the palace in horror. She got up from the fountain, indignation boiling in her brain. There may be several things amiss is this new Crystal Tokyo, but slavery was one thing she would not allow to continue. She had spent too much of her life as a virtual slave to the time gates to watch another waste themselves in a similar way. She started down the hedges back towards the palace. "One more thing, where are we?"  
  
She was already rounding the first bend before Daemon called after her, "This is Terreille!" Then he was alone in the garden. 


	4. Setsuna's Temper Tantrum

Author's Notes: All the usual disclaimers, neither series belongs to me, they all belong to their respective owners. This is a mostly Setsuna chapter, which gets a little out of character at the beginning. There's a little more coverage on Serenity here, but through the rest of the story she will be virtually non existent. Oh yes, Pluto makes an important revelation here that perhaps lets us know why the rating is what it is. Its not that unpleasant or graphic, but it is a vital part of the Dark Jewels series, so I couldn't avoid mentioning it here. Thanks to my one reviewer, hopefully this chapter will live up to your standards. It's a bit shorter than the others, but maybe that's a good thing. I only plan to have a few more chapters, but knowing me I will probably get carried away. I think that's about it, oh yes, one more thing. Chibi Usa or Rini for all the North American readers, is about teenage, maybe a little younger. It wasn't really key to the story so I did set a specific age. Please read and review, your input really helps. Well, enjoy the chapter.  
  
  
  
By the time Setsuna reached the palace, her indignation had cooled. Too many years of watching time go by had turned her into a pacifist. She loved Serenity too much to get into an argument with her queen over a man she hardly knew. But she couldn't just sit by and watch slavery pollute the pure and just city of Crystal Tokyo. The issue raged back and forth in her mind as she stood in the main foyer of the castle. Finally, she decided that if she didn't take a stand now, the issue would only get worse. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Setsuna walked in the direction of the Queen's chambers.  
  
"Setsuna!" exclaimed Queen Serenity, opening the door into her lavish bedchamber. She was wearing a light pink kimono bathrobe and her hair was piled under a towel on her head. Chibi Usa was lying on the silky bedspread, reading a magazine. One hand unconsciously twirled her hair. Serenity gently pushed Chibi Usa out the door. "Go small lady, Setsuna and I have to talk."  
  
Setsuna smiled fondly as Chibi Usa skipped out the door, magazine in one hand. In many ways she still resembled the small hyper child that used to visit a lonely guardian of time out in the time gates. Setsuna shakes her head to clear the memories that cloud her mind like a soft protective haze. She steadies herself, building up her resolve for this task before her. She can't help looking at the queen, how young she looks since her aging was halted at twenty-five. Setsuna shook herself, then finally breached the matter. "My queen, I have something to ask you."  
  
"Please call me Usagi, my queen makes me feel so old," Serenity replied with a grimace. "You know you can always ask anything of me."  
  
For a moment, Setsuna wished for the old Usagi back. Everyone had changed so much, she was the only one who remained the same. Once she had been physically the oldest of all the senshi, now only Chibi Usa remained younger. Time changes all, but time always remains the same. She had to stop stalling. Setsuna grasped for a nice way to breach the topic. "Seren . . . Usagi, did you know there are slaves in Crystal Tokyo?"  
  
Serenity looked at Setsuna in a strange way before answering. Setsuna got the feeling that her queen was psychoanalyzing her, and it made her uneasy. "Yes, there is one, I believe his name is Daemon Sadi. He was a gift from Dorothea SaDiablo. I couldn't turn it down. I don't take advantage of him personally because I have Mamoru, but he is here for the other senshi."  
  
"So there are no other slaves?" asked Setsuna. Serenity nodded, and Setsuna pondered her newfound information. There was one piece of the puzzle that she couldn't quite grasp. Serenity had hinted at it. Slowly, Setsuna went back over the words before finally asking, "What kind of slave is Daemon Sadi anyway?"  
  
Serenity blushed in typical Usagi style, and whispered very quietly in Setsuna's ear. There was a long pause as Setsuna made sense of the mumbled words. When she did, she stood up very quickly, the air around her becoming hot like an oven. Though Setsuna didn't know it, she had begun to descend slightly to the abyss in the hot anger of emotions. She opened the door and slammed it shut before Serenity could offer an explanation. The words repeated themselves over and over inside her head, pleasure slave, pleasure slave. The angry dirge pounded against her skull.  
  
The cool outside air hit her like a slap in the face, but it couldn't cool the indignation deep inside of her. The thought that there had been a person used for such purposes in Crystal Tokyo was beyond imagining, and yet it was true right before her eyes. Setsuna realized that she had just blown up at Queen Serenity. She wanted to go back and apologize, but deep inside Setsuna wasn't ready to forgive yet. She had been thrown into this strange new world against her will, but now that she was here, she wanted to change someone's life for the better.  
  
  
  
Daemon was still sitting outside underneath the fountain, his face turned upwards to the light of the moon. He descended slowly down towards the abyss, his breathing a slow regular intake and release. In this heightened sense of awareness, he could sense the emotions of others, their feelings riding out towards him on the crest of a storm. He sensed Pluto before he saw her, her anger sharp and hot in the cool night air. Automatically, Daemon drew himself inwards, preparing for a lashing. What he got instead, surprised him.  
  
"Daemon, what kind of slave are you?" The voice was tight with tension, and the question caused him to crack one eye open. It was that strange Meioh Setsuna again, or perhaps he should call her Setsuna since they seemed to be on a first name basis now. The way the question was asked implied that it was a rhetorical one and that Setsuna already knew the answer. There was an almost sadness inside Daemon at the fact that now there was no one left who could treat him with that kind of naïve trust he found in Setsuna. But at the same time he hardened, because now the inevitable ring of a small bell would most certainly becoming.  
  
"Why ask if you already know?" asked Daemon in a slow bored drawl, the danger hidden in his silky tones. He allowed himself an inward turned smile as he began to spin out the game, already anticipating the return to Dorothea's chambers at the destruction of another queen. It was a pity he could never find a queen he got along with, but perhaps it was better that way, for if they did get along, death would be a close follower. In recent times, Daemon had learned that unattached was the best way for a slave to go. Any emotions except for cold anger, and the owner had way too many strings to pull.  
  
Daemon saw the registering look in Setsuna's face as his answer proved what she already knew. He rose from the cold fountain stone, his silk shirt rustling as a breeze blew over its surface. His cold golden eyes watched Setsuna's face carefully, monitoring for any change in expression. After many long years he had become an expert in reading facial features and anticipating the actions that would follow.  
  
  
  
Setsuna felt his eyes boring into her head, and she knew that she had to talk quickly before she lost her nerve. She pulled nervously at a strand of green hair as she talked, the words spilling out soft and low. His eyes never left hers, but the expression in them slowly changed from hatred to something almost akin to pity. Setsuna couldn't reason out this change, but she finished off her sentence slowly. "There have never been any slaves in Crystal Tokyo, and I'm sure once Queen Serenity comes to her rightful mind, she will realize this as well. Meanwhile, I'm offering this plan to help you escape."  
  
He threw back his head and laughed a mocking laugh that shocked Setsuna. She didn't know what to expect, but certainly not this. She had thought through most of the details, and believed that she could carry out the plan quite easily as the guards at Crystal Tokyo were designed to keep people out, not to trap them in. Why was he putting down her plan so easily? Setsuna felt almost hurt at this, her first attempt to try and change the course of the future. Perhaps there was a reason why she had always stepped back and let others take charge.  
  
"Okay, I'll do it." Setsuna jumped. After Daemon had laughed, she hadn't expected him to actually want to follow through with her idea. She picked up her head to look at him, judging if he was serious. Though light danced within the golden irises, his face was deadly serious. Setsuna wondered at the sudden change of mind, instantly suspicious.  
  
"What, you will?" she asked, trying to reconfirm what she had just heard. He nodded, and this time Setsuna was unmistakably sure. There was no mistaking the movement, and deep inside herself Setsuna sensed it was the truth though she didn't know how. Gathering herself together, Setsuna pulled in her senses and looked out towards the distant hills that she had chosen as their escape path. She knew that she would have to escape as well, for without her, it would be hard for Daemon to get around the city easily enough to reach the hills. Once they left the land around Crystal Tokyo however, she would have to turn her attentions towards getting back to the Time Gate. "Very well. If you are truly serious, then I will meet you at the palace gate at sunrise. If not, then I can't make your decisions for you."  
  
She turned to leave, her dress flowing softly down around her ankles and billowing gently in the breeze created by her movement. She had a few preparations to make before attempting this wild plan. Setsuna stepped lightly across the cobble stoned center of the garden, her back to Daemon. She stopped when she felt a light touch on her arm. She turned around to see Daemon standing behind her, his movements so quiet that she hadn't even noticed.  
  
"Setsuna," he began, his eyes looking through her as if seeing some kind of picture just beyond, "Are you sure you want to do this for me?"  
  
She spun to look at him fully, her hair flying into his face. The scent of rose petals drifted through the air, before Setsuna's hair settled back into its former position. She looked at him almost sadly before replying, "All my life I have sat back and let time run its course. Now I want to make a difference and help somebody in their life. Yes, I am sure that I want to do this."  
  
Then, before she could have any second thoughts, she fled down the garden maze away from his piercing haunting gaze. 


End file.
